Fatherhood
by QueenAisha
Summary: Solomon Goldsmith’s wife dies on the night their child is born. He takes care of her to the best of his knowledge but as she starts to get older, she gets to be more and more of a handful. He hires Saya to help take care of her. Will she run Saya off?
1. Estelle

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

"Daddy!" Solomon looked at his daughter running towards him, her jumper covered with mud and sand.

"Are you ok?" he asked, picking her up. She had a little scrape on her face but was smiling. She held up a rock in her muddy hands.

"Look!" she said happily. "It looked like a bird."

He looked at it and it was shaped like a bird. He patted her head and smiled at her. She was so much like her mother. _Amara._ It was so hard to believe that she had died, even after four years it was hard to believe. It seemed like only last week she was here.

**Flashback:**

"Solomon!" he heard her call. He looked up from his book. It was summer and he was in his backyard, swimming with Amara. She was on the high dive, waving at him, her honey golden hair glistening in the sun.

"Get down from there!" he scolded, afraid she'd hurt herself.

She stuck her tongue out at him and yelled back. "Why don't you make me?"

"Amara, come on." He'd never seen her jump before, and it didn't seem like a good idea.

"You ain't my daddy!" she taunted with her fists firmly on her hips. Before he could say another word, she swan dived, landing into the deep end of the pool. He ran to her as she surfaced, Laughing.

"Don't do that." He said, his voice was calmer now, concerned.

"Party pooper." She said and let him help her out of the water. "I'm alright." He touched her now wet hair, which had just now grown back. "Ever since my Chemo therapy, you've been so wound up, relax…I'm alright."

Amara sighed, she loved Solomon but ever since he found out she had cancer, he had been so worried. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

She stood on her toes and kissed him. "Let me worry about that." She said. "I'm going to live long. I promise."

**Flashback ends:**

He was foolish to believe her, but he had believed her until the very end. "Daddy?" he felt a tug on his sleeve. "Are you ok?"

He looked at his daughter, her bright diamond eyes full of concern, her muddy hand still latched to his sleeve. He hugged her tightly. He knew Estelle has caused Amara's death. Amara's mother blamed Estelle still, but he knew better that to blame his daughter. He blamed himself. Whose fault was it that Amara had gotten pregnant?

"Let's go home." He said, not caring how dirty she got him, he took her home after covering the back seat. There was a car in the driveway, he recognized it immediately. "Adalie?" he said out loud, wondering what Amara's sister was doing here.

"Aunt Alie!" Estelle yelled, bouncing in her seat. "Where?" Solomon parked and as soon as he opened the door, Estelle tumbled out of the car; she hit the ground and ran to the door.

Adalie opened door to the house. Carolyn must have let her in. Carolyn was their house keeper, she was there everyday except weekends. "Hey Stella!" She said, picking up her niece, but not holding her too close, she looked at Solomon then back to Estelle. "You two been wrestling?" she asked the girl, and then looked at Solomon. "Looks like she pinned you down a few times."

Solomon laughed softly. "Nice to see you too Adalie. Estelle, why don't you to Carolyn and see if she'll give you a bath?"

Estelle hopped down, hitting the ground again. "I'm okay." She insisted as she got up and took off her shoes to go in search of Carolyn.

"She's a little clumsy." Adalie said. She was Amara's little sister and exact opposite. She was tall, had dark hair and eyes and didn't take as many risks. "Is that normal?"

"I took her to a specialist; it's nothing to worry about." Solomon assured her. "Nothing's wrong with her legs, she just moves too fast and ends up tripping."

"I'm just worried…"

"Because of Amara?"

"Solomon, we didn't find out until she was six…it was surprising she lives as long as she did." Adalie suddenly got quiet; she suddenly missed her sister terribly and wanted her to be here.

"I miss her too." Solomon said interrupting her thoughts.

"I wish mother didn't blame Estelle," Adalie said as she heard her niece's sweet laughter through the open window to the bathroom upstairs. "She'd just love her…I know she would."

"Yeah, she would." He sighed; remembering her angry voice as Adalie and her other child Nathan held her back from baby Estelle. _Let me go! _She screamed. _I'll kill that baby myself! She killed my daughter!_ Nathan had asked if he would bring Estelle to see their mother, but after that day, he never asked again.

"Let's go inside." Solomon said to his sister-in-law. She nodded and walked with him in the house. She until it was time for Estelle to go to bed.

Carolyn walked down the stairs. "Ms. Adalie is gonna tuck her in, I should be going now."

Solomon smiled at Carolyn, she had three adult children of her own and loved Estelle. She had since she met her.

**Flashback:**

Solomon was panicking. He had taken Estelle to the park, he looked away for one second and she had vanished. He ran around the park looking for his daughter and calling for her. But there was no sign of her, he hadn't even heard her crying.

"Estelle!" he yelled, looking around and checking under bushes, Estelle was crawling and liked crawling under bushes of anything that shaded her from the sun, she was smart, and also sweet, too sweet. She let everyone hold her, she reached for anyone who was standing near her and cried out for their attention.

Once in the bank, Estelle had opened her arms for the teller behind the desk, who slowly and nervously took her until they left. Of course she wouldn't cry, she trusted too easily, she didn't know the difference between who to trust and who not to trust.

"Estelle!" he called again and listened for any possible crying or babbling.

"You're going to be okay little one." He heard a woman say and looked around, he saw a brown haired woman who looked to be about middle age. She was holding a baby in a blue dress… Estelle! That was her dress.

"Estelle!" he yelled, relieved and ran to them.

"Is that her name?" the woman asked looking up from the infant. "She crawled over here with a cut under her arm and reached for me, I didn't know what to do." He saw a bandage on Estelle's left arm and she was curled up comfortably to the woman.

Solomon reached to take his daughter, but the woman holding her took a cautious step back. "What's wrong?" he asked. "I'm her father."

"How do I know that?" she asked. "Besides, she looks nothing like you." it was true. Estelle looked nothing like him she looked like Amara.

He took his wallet and took out two pictures, one of him and Amara and one of him and Estelle. She took a glance at the pictures, still holding Estelle carefully. She looked at him, like she was thinking. Estelle looked at him too and reached for him, smiling, her mouth moved slowly, like she was struggling. Her lips moved slowly and she forced the words out. "Da…Da…"

"Well…" the woman said, she sounded as surprised as he felt. "I'm convinced." She handed Estelle over to a shocked Solomon and smiled. "You take care little one."

"Wait." Solomon said before she left. She stopped and looked at him. "Can I ask you a question?"

**Flashback Ends:**

Carolyn had been with them since that day, and she had been a godsend, especially when Estelle had learned to throw punches. For such a small child, she had very strong fists.

"Goodnight Carolyn." He said walking her to the car.

"Goodnight Mr. Goldsmith." She said before she drove off.

Solomon walked back into the house and up the stairs to say goodnight to Estelle and Adalie.

"Aunt Alie?" he heard Estelle say as he got to the door. "What was Mama like?" that question made him pause in mid-reach for the door.

"Your mother was a really wonderful lady." He heard Adalie say. Her voice sounded strained like she was forcing herself not to cry.

"How old was I when she died?"

"Three hours old."

Solomon leaned against the wall and slid down slowly. He couldn't help but notice she had the same innocent tone in her voice as her mother.

"Did Mama love Daddy?" she asked

"Very much, she loved you and your daddy more than anything."

"Did I love mama?"

"More than you'll ever know."

"Did you love mama?" she asked. There was a pause, before Adalie spoke again.

"She was so nice…I loved her. She was my best friend…"

Estelle was quiet, and Solomon thought maybe she had fallen asleep. He was about to get up, when he heard her speak again. "Aunt Alie?"

"Yes baby?" Adalie whispered.

"Was mama pretty?"

It was Solomon who answered this time, from his place in the hallway. "Your mother was beautiful Estelle. Just like you."

A/N: this is my very first Blood+ story, so let me know if I'm doing something wrong. R&R please. If I'm doing something wrong, let me know.


	2. Fight

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

"Estelle!" Carolyn called for the girl up the stairs. She looked at her nephew who was a friend of Estelle's. He would be going to the same school as her, so he came over so they could go together. He shrugged, not knowing what Estelle was doing that was taking so long.

"Maybe she's still asleep?" Marc said to his aunt as he ate his breakfast.

"Maybe so." Carolyn said then called for Estelle again. "Come down here now!"

Solomon walked into the kitchen and saw that his daughter was still gone. "Want me to get her?" he asked.

"Don't you dare." Carolyn said. "She's acting like a baby, but we can't go get her, that's exactly what she wants." She took a deep breath and yelled "Estelle Lillian Goldsmith!" Marc and Solomon jumped, Carolyn sounded mad. "Get down here and eat. Now!"

There was a patter of footsteps and soon, Estelle was downstairs and in her worst nightmare.

A dress.

Estelle had no trouble with Jumpers or skirts, but even the thought of wearing a dress disgusted her, and this one was no exception.

It was a pale yellow dress that went to her knees, the lace made her itchy. It had short sleeves and a bow in the back. She was wearing stockings and yellow shoes to go with the outfit and yellow bows in her hair.

She looked cute is what Carolyn and Solomon thought. But Marc had never seen his best friend in a dress and thought she looked like a fool.

He burst out laughing and pointed at the sight before him, causing Estelle to run towards him, prepared to fight.

Carolyn held her back. "Stop it Estelle!" She scolded. "Marc! Shush!" Estelle's cheeks flamed with anger as she lowered her fists and Marc had to hold a hand over his mouth to stop the laughter that threatened to come.

"Sit down Estelle." Solomon said calmly, setting his daughter in a chair beside him. "Calm down and eat."

Estelle jabbed angrily at her breakfast with her fork. "I don't see why I have to dress like a girl." She growled.

"You are a girl." Marc reminded her.

"I know that!" she yelled, her fists hitting the table, the silverware clunk in tune with her fists. "I just don't see why I have to dress like one."

"I think you look very beautiful." Carolyn said and sat down.

Solomon placed a hand on top of Estelle's long, golden hair and promised it would only be for the first day of school and afterwards, she could wear whatever she wanted. She was growing so fast, she was six now and going to the first grade.

It scared him a little to let her out of the house, she was home schooled as a preschool and kindergartener. He felt her relax after his promise and she sat back in her seat and continues to eat. "Hurry up Estelle." Marc said.

"Shut up!" she yelled and started to purposely eat her food slowly. She got done just in time for them to leave.

They ran to the bus, Solomon got up, he was going to drive them but Carolyn pushed him back down in his seat, she was stronger than she looked. "Let her be a big girl." She told him. "You made her wear the dress, so at least let her ride the bus." She looked at the clock. "Besides, you have to get to work Doctor."

"Fine." He said, "But I'm picking her up from school."

Carolyn shrugged and started on the dishes.

**At the school:**

Saying Estelle Lillian Goldsmith was pissed off was an understatement. She had gotten in trouble on the first day because of a new student, Riku Miyagusuku. He was a klutz and made her spill her lunch on one of the teachers.

So now Estelle was mad because she had been kept inside during recess and didn't have any lunch. She walked outside during the end of the day with her book bag on her back. She looked around for Marc but didn't see her friend anywhere, but she did see someone else.

She removed her book bag and set it down before running towards Riku who had gotten her in trouble on her first day. "Gotcha Miyagusuku!" She yelled pinning him into the dirt.

Riku placed an arm on her waist and gripped her dress, trying to pull her off, but she scratched him and bit his hand when he released her. He started yelling but she paid no attention to his pleas and punched him in the face.

A circle of students gathered and many cheered her on, encouraging her to beat the boy to a pulp.

"Get up Riku!" one boy yelled. "You're gonna take that from a girl?"

Estelle's head shot up in his direction and she shot back. "You're next!" She felt Riku struggling under her and felt him grab her ankles. Estelle used the shoes she hated to mercilessly step on his hand and ground the gritty sole of her shoe into his wrist.

Riku released her ankles and she flipped him over. Some of her anger eased as she yanked his hair and rubbed his face into the cold dirt. "Teacher!" one girl yelled. "Miss Min!"

Miss Min was the teacher who she spilled her lunch on, but she didn't care at the moment, let the snot-nosed teacher see what she had caused; if he had been a little nicer Estelle wouldn't be out here beating up Riku.

"Stop it!" Estelle heard someone say, and arms wrap around her waist. This was something only Marc was foolish enough to do. "Stop it Estelle!" he said pulling her off of Riku, allowing him to get up.

Everyone was booing Marc as he went for Estelle, but their mouths hung open in shock when they saw just how tiny Estelle was and how much taller Riku was than her, her hands looked so delicate, she didn't look like she could hurt anyone with them.

There was blood coming from Riku's nose and they were still shocked, there were many glanced from Estelle to Riku then to Estelle's hands then to Riku's bloody nose and black eye.

Estelle struggled to get back to Riku even as Marc held her waist and arms. "Let me go!" she warned. "He messed up my first day of real school!" she explained. "He got me in trouble on my special day! Stay outta it Marc!"

Marc saw the teacher coming so he gave Estelle one final shake, "Stop it!" she stood still, her face red and her fists clenched. She glanced over at Riku to see the damage she had done, completely satisfied. She stood still as Miss Min and Miss Diva ran to them.

"Oh no!" Miss Min gasped, "Riku, what happened?" Riku glanced at Estelle who glared at him, he knew what would happen if he told.

"I fell." He lied.

"He hit the ground." Estelle added. "Over, and over, and over again."

Miss Min looked at her. "Estelle, did you see what happened?"

"No Miss Min." she answered innocently. "All I know is the boy fell, I helped him up."

"Is that what happened Marc?" the brown haired teacher asked.

"Yeah…" he said softly, he knew what Estelle did was wrong, but he would never get her in trouble.

"Do you need to go to the nurse Riku?" Miss Min questioned, pushing her glasses up.

"No ma'am." Riku said. "My brother will be here soon."

"Estelle." one of the teachers called. "Marc, your ride's here." Estelle retrieved her bag and walked with Marc to her father's car, without a second glance towards Riku.

"How was your first day of school?" Solomon asked as Marc and Estelle put their seatbelts on.

"Satisfying." Estelle said, grinning ear to ear. "Although, I did miss home school daddy."

"It was pretty boring." Marc said, leaning back in the seat and looking at the window. Even though neither of them spoke, Estelle and Marc vowed to not speak of the fight, using a language only they understood. A language only they used thorough touch and facial expression.

The gentle squeezes on his elbow said _don't tell my daddy. _The way he held and her hand and ran the pad of his thumb over the back of it said_ don't worry. _Estelle smiled, since the day they met, Marc had been a great comfort to her. She knew he wouldn't tell.

**Elsewhere:**

Riku walked home, he lied to his teacher about Kai coming to pick him up. He walked with his head down so no one would ask questions.

_How did this happen? _He thought as he though back to the day's events that lead up to his beating.

**Flashback:**

Riku was eating lunch quietly. It was his first day at a school in America and his English wasn't totally perfect. He had already been made fun of for it twice today.

The cafeteria got quiet and everyone's heads were turned to a girl with gold hair and bright amber eyes. Some of the kids were whispering, others were giggling.

"Hey everybody look!" one boy cheered. "Estelle's in a dress!"

She glared at the boy and growled, the whole cafeteria got quiet. Riku looked at the temperamental girl who was walking to a table where another boy was sitting; he didn't see what was wrong with her wearing a dress. He thought she looked cute. She also looked embarrassed and angry.

Before he could stop himself, he was walking towards her, thinking maybe if he told her that she'd feel better and maybe he'd make a new friend.

He kept walking towards her, when he slipped in applesauce someone spilled and toppled onto her, her lunch tray went flying straight into Miss Min. Estelle scrambled to push Riku off of her and raised a hand to smack him.

"Estelle Goldsmith!" Miss Min yelled before Estelle got a chance to hit him. "Principals office! Now!"

Estelle's cheeks flamed red with anger and embarrassment. She glared at Riku as she passed him.

"You're in for it now." A girl whispered to him.

"Dead man walking!" the boy next to her yelled, pointing at Riku.

**Flashback ends:**

"Oh my god!" Riku looked up and saw his sister looking at him…he got home a lot faster than he thought. "Kai! Dad!" she yelled pulling him into the restaurant that his father opened when they moved here. Business was going well so far.

"Holy Hell!" Kai said when he saw his little brother. "Did this happen at school?" Riku nodded slowly, embarrassed.

"One of the boys at school beat you up?" George asked, lifting Riku onto a bar stool. Riku didn't respond.

Saya, his older sister cleaned the blood off of his face. "So what's this kid's name?" she asked gently.

Riku looked at her, she looked too concerned. She was being patient, but he could tell she wanted an answer. "Goldsmith…" he said softly.

"Is that the first or last name?" she asked.

"Last."

George got out a phone book and started looking for the name Riku had just given. There was only one listed in the area, he wrote down the address and told Saya to put Riku in the car once she had gotten him cleaned up. He had to close early because his children all refused to stay here. He loaded them into the car and drove off.

**At the Goldsmith house:**

"You kids stop running in the house!" Carolyn scolded as Marc and Estelle raced upstairs to her room.

Solomon and Adalie sat in the living room, talking. "Did she seem happy?" Adalie asked, watching her niece.

"She seemed more than a little content…relaxed somehow." He answered.

"Was she fighting?" Adalie asked. "That's how Amara acted when she fought."

Solomon laughed softly. "That's one thing Amara and Estelle don't share. Estelle doesn't fight." He looked at a picture of his wife, next to a picture of his daughter. They were both standing in a creek, Amara was wearing a brown wig, but they both had the same ponytail and the same sunny smile.

"That's what you'd like to think." Adalie said under her breath. She took a sip of her drink before there was a knock at the door.

Solomon stared to get up, but Carolyn walked out of the kitchen. "Plant it." She told him and he sat back down quickly.

Carolyn opened the door and there were four people there. "Hello." She said, wondering if they were patients of Solomon's. The little boy looked beat up.

"Is this the Goldsmith residence?" the man who seemed to be the father of the other three asked.

"Um, yes it is," Carolyn responded, she didn't notice Adalie behind her. "How may I help you?"

"My name is George Miyagusuku, you must be Mrs. Goldsmith."

"Me?" Carolyn asked. "Goodness no!"

"My sister died six years ago," Adalie said, moving closer, Carolyn looked at her. "Is there a problem?" she saw Riku and invited them into the living room.

Solomon stood up as he saw them enter; he introduced himself and then saw the bruises on Riku's face. "What happened?"

"My son got into a fight at school." George said.

"Oh Lord…" Carolyn interrupted then called up the stairs, "Marc! Get down here!"

Almost instantly, there was the patter of footsteps overhead. Marc and Estelle ran down the stairs together. They saw the company they had in the room but said nothing. "Yes aunty?" Marc said.

"Did you beat up this boy?" Carolyn asked him.

"Wait," Kai said before Marc could answer. "Riku said the kid who beat him up was named Goldsmith."

"Estelle?!" Solomon exclaimed, shocked, looking at his daughter.

"Oh wow…" Carolyn whispered wide eyed.

"A girl?" Gorge couldn't believe it; his son had gotten beaten up by a girl, and a puny one at that.

"Estelle," Adalie said softly, kneeling down and holding her nieces hands. She looked shocked and tried not to burst into laughter, thinking how much her sister and niece seemed alike. "They seem to think you beat up Riku, is that true?"

"Yes," she said bluntly. "He got me in trouble."

"How?" Saya asked, looking back and forth from Riku to Estelle.

Estelle looked at Saya, and then back to Adalie, explaining what happened, how she had gotten kept inside at recess and had to miss out on lunch, and how humiliated she still was.

"That's no reason to fight Estelle." Adalie scolded gently.

"That's why you ate like a little pig when you got home." Carolyn said.

Estelle stood with her arms crossed, pouting slightly as Riku spoke. "I didn't mean to make you fall." Estelle looked at him, at the damage she had done…past the faint bruises, he was cute and he did look sorry. She didn't plan on hurting him that bad; she just wanted to embarrass him like he embarrassed her, but when he grabbed onto her, she got defensive. "I'm sorry." He whispered.

"I'm sorry too." She said, everyone was shocked, the never expected Estelle to apologize, nor did they expect what was going to happen next, Estelle walked to Riku and grabbed his hand gently, hers looking as pale as snow and very thin compared to his. "When I get hurt, Carolyn puts ice on me. Let go put ice on your eye."

Riku followed her. Marc went with them to let the grown ups talk. Solomon watched Estelle; of course she would be punished for his actions. It was hard for him to believe she pinned a boy down and beat him senseless, it was harder for him to believe his little girl was growing so quickly.

Saya looked at him, watching his daughter, then she looked at the picture of the woman who looked like an adult version of Estelle, the only difference what, this woman had a scarf tired over and obviously bald head, but she was smiling like there was no tomorrow, holding her hands over a small pudgy stomach, she must have been Estelle's mother.

Adalie had said her sister died years ago. She wondered what it was like for Solomon, raising a daughter who looked exactly like someone he lost.

A/N: Okay, Saya's in this Chapter, not much of a part, but more is coming soon. R&R please


	3. A peek into the past pt1

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

Solomon Goldsmith was in collage and walking to one of the buildings silently. A group of girls walked out of the building and laughing together, the smallest one bumped into him and they both dropped their things. "Oh!" she gasped, surprised as she fell.

He bent down quickly to pick up both of their things. "I'm sorry about that." He said gathering her books and the few things that fell out of her bag.

"Are you okay?" one of the girls that was with her asked.

"Yeah Kara," she answered. "You go on, I'm just going bag to my dorm room." Kara nodded and went to catch up with the other girls. The girl who had a scarf tied tightly onto her blonde hair smiled at him. "I'm sorry too, I wasn't paying attention."

They both reached for a book at the same time and their hands brushed against each others, making them both jump and turn bright red. He looked at her, and she looked back at him shyly "My name's Solomon," he said holding out a hand for her, "Junior."

She smiled and shook his hand. "I'm Amara." She said, shaking it. "Freshman." For a while he didn't wanna let go of her hand, she was small for her age and looked so fragile. Under her blue scarf, here short blonde curls and she had eyes, the same honey golden color as amber. "Excuse me," she interrupted, giggling. "Can I have my hand back?"

He let go quickly, his face red, she was smiling now. He reached for a bottle that had fallen out of her bag, they were painkillers. He stared at them for a moment before she snatched them out of his hand and stuffed them back in her bag. "I'm sorry he said and stood up, helping her stand.

"Nothing to worry about," she said and let him help her back onto her feet. "And thanks." She dusted her dress off.

He walked her back to her dorm, she was on painkillers and who knew just how much that fall really did hurt. "You didn't have to walk me all the way back here." She said unlocking the door. "Come in."

He noticed there one only one bed in her room. "Where's your roommate?" he asked, looking around the room, it was spotless and decorated in blue and silver, all but the multicolored "Get well soon." balloons, cards and the pink roses on the nightstand by her bed.

"I don't have one." She said, laying her books on her bed. "My parents went through hell to get me in a room of my own; they did the same for my brother."

"Your brother?" he asked.

"Yeah…" she said. "I'm the middle child; I have a brother that goes here, Nathan, and a little sister, Adalie who's in high school, eleventh grade. Why?" she asked. "Are you an only child?"

"No," Solomon answered. "I'm the middle child too. I have two brothers, Amshel and Carl."

"Not one girl huh?" Amara asked walking to her mini fridge and bringing them both orange sodas. They sat there talking for a while as if they knew each other. "Hey," Amara said after an hour had passed. "Weren't you going into that building for a class?"

Solomon looked at the clock and stood up quickly, cursing under his breath, making Amara giggle. "I missed a whole class."

"I'm sorry." She apologized. "If I had been looking where I was going, you wouldn't have missed you class."

"It's not your fault." he said gathering his things. "If I had left when I walked you back here, I would have made it on time."

She stood up and opened the door. "Still…I'm really sorry."

"It's okay." He assured her, walking to the door.

She nodded and let him pass. "I'll see you around then." She said and as she got ready to close the door, he stopped her. "Leave something?" she asked.

"No…" he said, he seemed a little unsure at the moment. "I was just wondering if…" he stopped.

"Wondering if what?" she asked, curious.

"If I could see you again…" he looked embarrassed, she couldn't help giggling. He was too cute.

"Of course." She said, smiling. "I like you. Maybe sometime we can go out to dinner."

"You're serious?" he said, surprised.

"Yeah," she giggled, nodding. "Why wouldn't I be? You're cute, nice, and I like you." Solomon couldn't believe her; he'd never met a girl bold enough to say those things. "You gonna stand there staring at me or are you gonna get to class?"

This time it was Solomon who was apologizing. He said he'd see her later and left quickly.

After that day, Solomon walked Amara to her dorm room everyday, and stayed on Wednesdays when he had more time. (I don't know much about collage people, I'm only 15…until June 28th)

One Wednesday, Amara and Solomon were laughing at something silly she had said. She threw a pillow and him and there was a knock at the door. "Who is it?" she asked and they both froze.

"It's Kara." Came the voice on the other side of the door, "Let me in."

Solomon and Amara scrambled to get up, and she quickly motioned to the bed and he hid under it, she wasn't ashamed of her friendship with him, but Kara gossiped like there was no tomorrow. "Hang on!" she called, And then lied, "I'm naked!"

Solomon's face flushed as he was assaulted with an image of Amara naked, his face burned brighter as he saw her shirt and skirt his the floor from his spot under the bed, she wrapped her bath robe over herself and opened the door. "Hey," Kara said. "What took you so long?"

"I told you I was naked." Amara said, repeating the lie once again.

"Yeah, whatever." Kara said. "Look, there's a party going on tonight, you up to it?"

"I don't know," she said. "I have a lot to do."

"Forget that!" Kara yelled and hopped on the bed. Amara's eyes widened, she hoped Solomon was okay under there. "We need to party! You need to loosen up girl!"

"Okay! Okay!" Amara squealed. "I'll go! Just get off of my bed. You're not exactly petite."

Kara stuck her tongue out at her friend and got off of the bed. "Just be there, ok?" Amara nodded and watched as Kara left.

"So, you wanna go?" Amara asked Solomon as he came out from under the bed.

"To the party?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah." Amara said smiling. "With me?"

He looked at her quickly and stared into her eyes, in the short time he'd known her, he'd found out she was fond of joking. "Do you mean that?" he asked when he couldn't find any hint of a lie or a joke in her eyes.

"Yeah." She said moving closer. "Why would I lie about that?" she smiled, and looked up at him. "I know I joke a lot, but I like you."

"I know…" he said. "You say that all the time, you like-" he was interrupted when she stood on her toes and gave him a soft peck on the lips. His eyes widened slightly, "Amara…"

She smiled and stood flat on her feet again. "I say it all the time because I mean it." He stared at her, shocked. "Now get out." She giggled. "I have to get naked for real this time." She pushed him out of her room and locked the door.

Solomon changed clothes and came back to Amara's room. He knocked on the door lightly and his mouth dropped open when he saw her. She looked so different.

She was wearing a strapless red dress; the top half shimmered slightly and tightened slightly at the waist. The bottom half reached mid-thigh and swayed gently. She had on red low heels and two bangle bracelets on each arm. She wore no scarf on her short curls this time, but she let them hang freely. She had a red choker around her neck and for the first time since he met her, she was wearing make up, a little bit of lipstick and eye shadow.

"Wow…" he said, stunned. "You look…amazing."

She smiled at him; her cheeks turned a little red. "Thank you." She said happily. "So do you." She turned around to lock her door and he nearly got a nosebleed right then and there. The dress was backless! There were straps that were criss-crossing over her back to help hold the dress up. It was obvious she wasn't wearing a bra.

"I'm ready." She said turning around and looked at him confused when she saw him holding his nose. "What's wrong with you?" she asked.

"Let's just go." He said, avoiding her question.

Solomon took her to the party; it was your average collage party, drugs, loud music, drinking and people sneaking upstairs for sex. He looked at Amara who looked around the place with wide curious eyes. He would have to keep an eye on her if he wanted to keep her out of trouble.

"Let's dance!" Amara yelled over the loud music. She grabbed his hand and smiled up at him, leading him onto the dance floor. The music pounded through the speakers loudly and she moved in tune to the music, her small form looking graceful and majestic among everyone else who to Solomon looked like drunken monkeys compared to her.

The music got louder and the crowd got even more hyped. They moved faster and Amara got shoved around and Solomon tried to grab her hand, but she was too far away. "Amara!" he called as he moved through the crowd trying to find her. "Amara!"

He couldn't find her for about twenty minutes, he was about to check and see if she had left when he saw a flash of shimmering red, headed up the stairs. "Amara!" he yelled trying to push his way through the crowd up the stairs.

He finally got up the stairs, thankful it was a lot less crowded on the second level. He turned left at the top of the stairs but couldn't find her anywhere. He stepped on something and looked down. It was one of Amara's bangle bracelets, right in front of one of the bedroom doors.

"Amara?!" he yelled banging on the door. "Are you in there?!" he panicked and leaned closer to the door, pressing his ear against it, his eyes widened when he heard bedsprings and soft crying. He backed up and kicked the door in, disgusted by the sight before him.

Amara's dress lay in a heap by the bed, and she laid there, shaking and crying. Some guy was above her, kissing her neck. Both of their heads shot in the direction of the door, Amara never stopped shaking even as Solomon yanked the stranger off of her and knocked his teeth out.

"What happened?" he asked, covering her shaking body. She didn't respond but her shaking continued and her nose started to bleed. "Amara?!" he nearly yelled, holding her, he helped her sit up and she began coughing up blood in large amounts.

He grabbed her dress and wrapped her in a blanket, rushing her to the hospital in his car.

**At the Hospital:**

Solomon paced inside the waiting room. What if whatever drug she had been fed killed her? He didn't know what he'd do if she wasn't there anymore.

He hadn't known her very long, but he'd become quickly attached to her. She made him smile, and never ceased to amaze him. _I like you_. The words ran through his head, as if she were repeating them again. He wanted to say "I like you too." But he couldn't get the words out.

A doctor came into the waiting room and got him, he followed the man into the hall. "How is she?" he asked.

"She's a fighter," the doctor replied. "She almost didn't make it, it's like you said, someone must have spiked a drink she had, but whatever they gave her had a bad reaction to her prescriptions."

"Prescriptions?" Solomon knew she had painkillers, but what else was she taking?

The doctor looked at Solomon, finally he asked, "How are you related to her?"

"I'm not." He said.

"But I Am." Came a voice from down the hall. A tall blonde male walked towards them and flipped his hair behind his ear. "I'm Nathan, and the girl you brought in is my little sister. How is Amara holding up doctor?"

"She's going to be alright, but she had her stomach pumped." The Doctor looked at Nathan. "And we found something in her blood…"

"I know." Nathan said. "Doctors are so nosey…Amara's white cell count is extremely high, right?" the doctor nodded and Solomon could only stare. "We've known for a while, the girl has leukemia. But try not to feel sorry for her; she'd hate it if you looked at her like she was some charity case… can I see her now?"

Nathan didn't even wait for an answer; he pushed his way by and went into the room where his sister was sleeping. Solomon stood in the doorway and watched. Cancer? Amara had cancer? Why her? She seemed so happy, and healthy. She was small, and yes, she kept a scarf over her hair, but she couldn't be sick! There had to be some mistake.

"Hey," Nathan said softly, snapping Solomon out of his thoughts, he saw that Amara was waking up.

"Hey yourself." Amara said, sounding sick. "What are you doing here beauty queen?"

"I should be asking you the same thing." Nathan said, gently punching her shoulder. "What did I tell you about collage parties?"

She giggled as if everything was alright. "I forget." She lied.

"Well did you forget what happened?" Nathan questioned, serious.

"No." she answered. "I was dancing, and then the music got louder. Then Solomon and I got separated…" she paused as if remembering something. "Solomon! Where…!" Nathan pointed to the door, Amara looked at Solomon, who had been quiet the whole time then to her brother. "Can I talk to him, alone for a second?"

"Sure." Nathan said and walked to the door. "But make it quick, mom and dad are on the way."

"Ugh!" she groaned, not really wanting her parents in this. Nathan laughed as he left and Solomon moved closer. "Aw, don't be so stiff." She teased. "I don't bite…often."

Solomon smiled weakly and stood by the bed. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Fine…" she said softly. "Solomon," she said holding his hand. "Be honest…that guy…did he…?"

"No." Solomon answered, squeezing her hand. "He's probably still looking for his teeth."

Amara burst into giggles. "You didn't!" she squealed.

He nodded, smiling, glad she was feeling okay. She looked so scared when she was on that bed, so helpless. "What did he do?"

Amara suddenly look embarrassed. "He…he said he'd help me find you." She whispered. "And I believed him, while we were looking…he got me a drink, next thing I know, my dress is on the floor and I'm on my back." She started to cry; she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him, shaking. "I was scared…so scared…thank you." She looked up at him as he wrapped his arms around her.

"It's okay." He said softly, drying her eyes. "You're going to be okay." He laid her back down, hoping she'd relax. She was a little calmer now, but didn't let go of his hand. "Why didn't you tell me?" he suddenly asked.

"Tell you what?" she said.

"That you have leukemia." She slowly let go of his hand and looked away. "Your brother told the doctor while we were in the hall."

"Because." She whispered. "When people find out those sorts of things about you…they treat you different." She sighed. "I told my grandmother, now she looks at me funny. She jumps whenever I sneeze, and when my bother and sister and I went to visit her, she made me drink out of plastic cups, use paper plates and even made me scrub out the bathtub with bleach when I got out of the tub…I didn't want you to act that way too. I'm not contagious."

She said that last part to herself more than anyone. "Look at me." Solomon said. She turned her head and her eyes widened as he kissed her. It wasn't the innocent peck on the lips she gave him earlier, this was a real kiss, and Amara could have sworn there were fireworks.

"I…I…" she stuttered, "Solomon, why did you…?" she was confused. He just found out she had a disease and kissed her anyways. She expected him to leave.

"Remember earlier, when you said you like me?" he asked, she nodded, her face red. "I like you too."

"You mean that?" she asked. "You're not just saying that?"

"I wouldn't lie about it." He said.

She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm glad." She said and kissed him.

"Oh gross!" someone yelled from the door. They both looked and saw a girl who resembled Amara looking at them. She had dark hair, and eyes, and was younger.

"Hello to you too Adalie." Amara said to her little sister. "Solomon this is Adalie, my little sister, Adalie, this is Solomon."

"Nice to meet you Adalie." Solomon said to the teen girl who smiled and waved.

Adalie came into the room and hugged her sister. "I miss you at home." She complained. "There's no one there to say 'Get out of my room!' anymore."

Amara and Solomon both laughed at this. Amara promised to come visit soon, and Adalie seemed to cheer up at this.

Solomon smiled as he watched Adalie and Amara talk like best friends. He wouldn't worry too much about her illness now. She was happy, and he liked her. He'd just have to keep a closer eye on her so there wouldn't be anymore trouble like there was tonight.

Adalie laughed as her sister tickled her and Solomon smiled. Amara would make a great mother…wait…where did that thought come from?

A/N: Well, here's out first look at Solomon and Amara, R&R please, but I might be taking a break until after Saturday. I have a few more things to do before my birthday. But like I said R&R please.


	4. sleepy

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

Disclaimer: I don't own Blood+

"This is no fun…" Estelle sang. "No fun…staring at the wall." Estelle's punishment started the second Riku and his family had left, she had been sent to bed early and told to sit in the corner, facing the wall until her father came upstairs.

Estelle heard footsteps but didn't move. Solomon opened the door and walked to his daughter. "How are you holding up prize fighter?" he asked

"Hardy har-har." Estelle said sarcastically. "Real funny daddy."

"What?" he asked grinning. "I think you have a career as a female wrestler in the future." Estelle looked up and stuck her tongue out at her father. Solomon stuck his tongue out back at her and patted her head. She giggled and hugged him. "What do you think should happen to you champ?"

"I loose my dessert privileges?" she asked.

"For a week." He said.

"No TV?" she asked.

"For the rest of the month."

She looked at him with a curious look. "You're gonna make me wear a dress tomorrow, aren't you?"

"Yeah." He told her. "The laciest, pinkest one I can find."

"Okay! Okay!" Estelle cried out. "I get it! No fighting unless I get hit first or if a stranger comes to me."

Solomon smiled and hugged his daughter. She hugged back and he picked her up, laying her on her bed. "But no sweets, TV or pool time for you for a while, sweets for a week, pool and TV for a month."

"No dress, right?" she asked.

"No dress." He laughed and kissed her forehead. Estelle giggled but the giggle gave way to a yawn. "Sleepy?" he asked. She nodded and laid down.

Solomon gave his daughter her favorite bunny and the blanket her mother made before she was born.

**Flashback:**

Solomon sat and watched as Amara stitched a yellow blanket with music notes on the fabric. "How do you know it's a girl? What if we have a boy?"

"I just know." She said. "Our baby's a little girl." She sat still and stitched the name Estelle on the bottom of the blanket.

"Who's Estelle?" he asked.

"My grandmother." Amara answered smiling.

"The one that made you scrub the tub?" he asked.

"No." she told him. "That's my mother's mother, Lydia. This is my dad's mother, Estelle."

"I hope she was nicer to you than Lydia was."

"Oh yes," Amara said. "Much nicer, she was at the hospital every time I had to go, she babied me."

"So you want to name the baby after her?" Solomon asked his wife.

Amara smiled brightly at him. "I really do." she said, finishing the blanket.

**Flashback ends:**

Estelle traced one of the music notes on the blanket with her fingers "Mama made this just for me." She bragged and clung to the blanket, pulling it under the comforter and next to her as if her father was going to take it from her.

Solomon smiled and pulled the blankets up to her chin and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight Estelle." He said and turned off her the lights and turned on her night light.

"Goodnight daddy." She yawned and curled up with her blanket.

Solomon walked into the hall where Adalie was waiting. "How's she holding up?" she asked.

"So far, so good." Solomon said walked downstairs with Adalie, who was now like a little sister to him, she was one of those rare in-laws, the type he never fought with. "She hasn't thrown any fits or tantrums."

"Not yet." Adalie told him, "She's probably just seeing how long it's going to take for you to cave."

"I don't always cave." He said.

She laughed, "Yes you do. Amara once told me, she was going to have to be the mean parent, because you give in to easily."

"That's not entirely true." He said as he walked her outside and to her car. Carolyn had Taken Marc home earlier, so there was going to be no one there, but him and Estelle.

"It is." She said, and before he could respond she held up her hand. "Now let it go."

Solomon shook his head, laughing softly. "Fine," he said, opening the door for her. She slid into the car and smiled. He closed the door and she put her seatbelt on. "You win."

She laughed and started the car. "I always do." she told him. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight." He said and waved as she backed out of the driveway and drove off.

**Next day:**

Estelle woke up and picked out the outfit she wanted to wear to school. A hello kitty t-shirt and a denim skirt. She didn't mess with her hair that morning or put any bows in it, nor was she going to ask Carolyn or her father to help her with it she let the wild curls hang down her back, she smiled and ran to the bathroom to get cleaned up and change clothes.

She was still grounded, but that didn't mean she couldn't see her best friend, she paid no attention to her punishment as she got dressed and ran downstairs to start her day. A day that would hopefully be much better than yesterday.

"You're in a good mood this morning." Marc said to Estelle as they sat side by side on the bus. Estelle smiled and nodded, but Marc though this sudden good mood was a bit creepy. "Well, better than seeing you throw punches."

Estelle made a face at him.

The bus stopped and let on another student. Estelle looked up and waved to him "Hi Riku!" she said happily, smiling at him.

Riku smiled back and walked to the seat Marc and Estelle were sitting in. "Hi." He said.

"Good morning." Marc said, nodding to him.

"Hello." Estelle said. "Why don't you sit with us?" she asked, moving over.

"Really?" Riku asked, his face was still bruised, but the ice did help.

"Yeah." Estelle said smiling and nodding. Riku slid into the seat and sat by the window, Estelle sat in the middle, and Marc sat in the aisle seat. Estelle smiled and held both of there hands the rest of the way to school.

**Later:**

Riku sat with Estelle and Marc during lunch, which turned a few heads. Everyone was surprised that the boy Estelle beat up yesterday was eating lunch with her, but recess was even more of a shocker.

"Tag you're it!" Riku yelled, giving Estelle a gentle shove, she stumbled but laughed before running after him. "Run Marc!" Riku yelled. Marc stopped dead in his tracks and ran beside Riku, Estelle running fast after them.

Estelle sped up and tagged Marc, giggling "You're it." She said and ran to catch up with Riku. Marc was surprised by how someone so small could run so fast. He eventually caught up to her and she was it again.

Marc and Riku kept running but when they looked back, Estelle was far behind them. Riku turned around and ran to her to see if she was okay. "Estelle?" he asked when he got close to her.

"Tag!" she yelled and hit his arm. She ran in the other direction, not knowing why he ran back for her, she would have caught up.

"No fair!" Riku yelled chasing after her. She giggled and kept running, but slowed up again and fell as if she were exhausted. "Are you okay?" Riku asked finally catching up with her.

"What happened?" Marc asked, running to both of them. He kneeled beside Estelle and places a hand on her back. She glanced and him and smiled weakly. Marc looked at Riku accusingly, "What did you do?!"

"Nothing!" he said defensively.

"He's telling the truth." Estelle said sounding sleepy. "I just got tired."

"Again?" Marc asked helping her stand. "Did you tell your dad?"

"No!" she said quickly.

"What's going on?!" Riku asked.

"Nothing," Estelle told him. "I just get tired sometimes."

"Not sometimes." Marc said. "A lot."

"I just need more sleep." Estelle insisted.

"You sleep enough." Marc said and sat her on a bench.

Estelle stuck her tongue out at him and smiled at Riku as he sat next to her. "Is it normal for you to get tired like that?" he asked.

"Look." Estelle said, irritated by their concern. "Some people get tired faster than others, I'm just one of those people, so get that through your thick skulls right now!" her face was getting pink now from anger.

"Fine." Marc said, hoping her face would regain its normal color. "But you need to tell your dad. He said, but when he looked at her, she was laying her head on Riku's shoulder, dozing off slightly.

"Shhh." Riku whispered to Marc and let Estelle rest for the remainder of recess. He just figured because she was little and did all that running, she was tired, but he didn't know it was something worse.

**After school:**

Marc and Estelle sat at the table at the house, eating their after school snack, Marc finished first as usual. "Hurry up Estelle!" he said and ran outside.

"I'm coming!" Estelle yelled and left her food on the table.

"Hold on little lady." Carolyn said, stopping Estelle.

"My plate?" Estelle asked, wondering if that was the reason she was stopped.

"No," Carolyn said. "That'll be here when you get hungry again." She un-wrapped a small piece of chocolate after looking around to make sure Solomon wasn't around. "Your daddy wouldn't like this if he saw it." She said and gave the child the candy. "But what's one little chocolate gonna hurt?"

"Thank you." Estelle said and put it in her mouth, eating it before she was caught. Carolyn patted her head and let her leave to play with Marc.

**Later that day:**

Estelle was ready for bed and brushing her hair which never seemed to cooperate with her. Once she was satisfied she walked down the hall to her father's study and opened the door. "Hi daddy." She said and walked in.

Solomon who was sitting at his desk smiled at his daughter. "Hey, almost ready for bed?"

She nodded and walked over to him and climbed in his lap. "Busy?"

"No, not at all." He said and kissed her cheek.

"Good." She said cheerfully and took out a book of crossword puzzles. "Let's do this."

"Only one." Solomon said. "Then you have to go to bed." Estelle nodded and opened the book and worked with her father on the puzzle. They worked quickly together and Estelle yawned.

Solomon looked at his daughter, maybe it was a mistake taking her out of home school, but both Carolyn and Adalie argued that he needed to let her grow up. A lot of good that did, she seemed so tired.

Estelle looked at the finished puzzle. "Next one." She said.

"Bed time." Solomon said.

"Pleeeeeease?" she said cutely and looked at him with big eyes. "One more and I'll go to bed, I promise."

Solomon sighed; he'd never been able to resist those eyes. "Only one more." He said and turned the page.

Estelle was cheerful and sleepy at the same time as she looked over the puzzle and fought to keep her eyes open.

"Four letter word for vessel." Solomon said but got no response from Estelle. He looked at her, her eyes were barely open but she too was staring at the page. "Estelle?" he said and gently shook her.

"Huh?" she said and shook her head. "Oh," she yawned and stretched her arms. "It's…it's ship." She said and cuddled up to him. "Let me rest my eyes a while." She said softly.

Solomon smiled and set the book down, wrapping his arms around her. "Whatever you say." He said and stood up, carrying her to her room.

Solomon laid Estelle down on her bed and covered her up. It felt awkward without the usual little argument when she tried to stay awake and stood on her bed, hopping up and down, proving that she wasn't tired. He looked at her, sleeping with no fight in her tonight. What could be wrong with her?

A/N: I know it took long but I barely get any free time now but I really am trying. R&R please


End file.
